Legislative Branch Vocab Terms

A long-shot candidate./

The party member that makes sure all other members are present for crucial votes.

Presiding officer over the House of Representatives.

Where an issue is placed when it has to be dealt with immediately.

A system of dividing power between the three branches of government.

Leader of the political party in each house that has the second most members or fewest members.

Positions that a party adopts and stands on during an election campaign.

Latin Term for a two-house legislature.

A permanent committee.

A politician's attempt to shape the way people view a particular event or

A cooperative effort by both political parties.

The mass of Americans whose opinions are not loud and public but have enormous political power.

An organization that seeks to achieve political power by getting members elected to office.

The redistribution of the House of Representatives among the states.

A vindictive often irrational investigation that preys on public fears.

Nickname for the Republican Party

A political ananlyst on the radio, newspaper, or television.

President of the Senate but can really only break ties.

A journalist that seeks out the scandalous activities of elected officials.

Drawing Congressional district lines that favor a particular political party or politician.

A procedure for ending a debate in the Senate.

The candidate chosen by a political party to run for a particular office.

A term describing people who are very sympathetic for the poor and favor more welfare spending.

Undecided portion of the electorate that can vote for Democratic or Republican candiate

Over half of the members of the House or Senate are present so business can be conducted.

When two-thirds of both houses vote to make a bill into a law without the president's signature.

An elected official who is already in office and is running for reelection.

The committee that sets the rules in the House of Representatives.

The power of a popular candidate to gather support for other candidates. They are riding their ___.

A survey used to gauge public opinion.

The longest serving member from the Majority Party in the Senate. Mostly ceremonial and presides over the Senate.

An officeholder whose term has expired and cannot be continued and their replacement has been elected.

The counting of the people every ten years.

A program added to a bill that benefits only one or a few Congressional Districts.

Political activity that arises from the ground level. Most donations are under $100.

The distribution of the House of Representatives among the states.

People represented by an elected official.

When a Senator tries to talk a bill to death or delay a vote.

A meeting of political parties to determine legislative agenda, how they vote in Iowa, Congressional clubs.

A highway that encircles Washington, D.C. that is used to label our national political system.

A state election in which party members vote from a list of candidates from their same party. Winners will advance.

An organized effort to win an election or to strive for an elected office.

To publically scold an elected official for a wrongdoing. They are not removed.

A national meeting of a political party where they announce their presidential candidate.

The House of Representatives accuses a government official of a crime and votes to send them to the Senate for a trial.

Election in which party members choose a candidate from their party to participate in the general election.

A committee that includes members of both houses.

Politician who appeals to the fear, greed, and hatred of the people.

Campaigning on a local level like standing on a part of a tree that has been cut down.

A joint committee that irons out differences in bills that have passed both houses but in different forms.

Government paperwork that is slow and tedious.

A subunit of a committee. Where a committee sends a bill to be studied in detail.